title: The minimally invasive far medial subvastus approach for total knee arthroplasty in valgus knees.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The lateral approach in the valgus knee asks for a lot of soft tissue releases during the arthrotomy. The hypothesis of this study was that the far medial subvastus approach could be used in valgus knees and would guarantee both functional and radiological good to excellent results.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a retrospective study on 78 patients (84 knees) undergoing primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for type I or II fixed valgus knees. The mean (SD) preoperative mechanical alignment was 187° (4°) HKA angle. Functional recovery, pain, tourniquet times, necessary soft tissue releases as well as radiological alignment were measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Knee Score improved significantly from 45 (10) to 90 (10) (P < 0.05) and the function score improved as well from 35 (20) to 85 (10) (P < 0.05). Flexion improved from 110° (10°) to 137° (8°). Hospital stay was 4 (1.2) days. Alignment was corrected to 181° (1.5°) HKA angle with a postoperative joint line shift of +2.8 (3.2) mm. No clinical instability, as evaluated by the senior author, or osteolytic lines was observed at minimal one-year radiological follow-up.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The far medial subvastus approach is an excellent approach to perform Krackow type I and II TKA with primary PS implants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Saint Luc University Hospital, Avenue Hippocrate 10, 1200, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Angelique
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Koninckx
authors.forename: Pierre-Emmanuel
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Schwab
authors.forename: Arnaud
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Deltour
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Thienpont
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D019645:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee; D017760:Bone Malalignment / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016916:Joint Deformities, Acquired / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures; D020370:Osteoarthritis, Knee / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome